Maybe After All These Years
by Penguin1127
Summary: It's been four years since Percy has left. Annabeth is still a servant who is running errands for her mistress. But when two characters from her past come up again, they have to find a way to work together. Will they forgive and forget? Or will they hang on to the feelings in the past?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Annabeth POV:

I had known him when he was still a regular person. Just a regular villager, nothing else. None of the fancy titles he held now. Glaring at the cobblestone path that led to his old cottage, I hurried by quickly to the market.

"Milk, cheese, bread…Nothing new here," I muttered as I read aloud the grocery list my mistress had sent me. He used to be just like me-a humble servant scurrying around to run errands for our masters or mistresses. That side of him seemed lost long ago...When was it that I first met him?

I had been twelve, I remembered. A homeless girl who had run away when she was seven. That day, I had been scouring the streets for food when I literally ran into him.

"I'm so sorry!" I gasped, leaning down to pick up the now spilled grocery items.

"It's fine," He replied.

My stomach growled at the sight of food. The aroma of fresh baked bread was one that she had longed for since she ran away.

He chuckled. "Hungry, are you? It's fine. I'll buy more."

My eyes widened at the thought, and for the first time, met his eyes. Stormy grey to sea green. "I-I couldn't. I can't pay you for this."

He seemed to take in her tattered clothes and grimy face and hands. "I'm sure master wouldn't mind if you ate his groceries if you would be willing to work for it."

A job! The hope that had burned out so long ago was now rekindled. "Thank you so much!"

"No problem. I'm Percy Jackson, by the way." He stuck out a hand.

"Annabeth Chase," I replied, shaking his hand. We had talked on the way to his master's house. I hadn't known what made me trust him, but I had told him my life's story. I had told him about my family and the adventures that I had had along the way. He, in turn, had told me about his family's poverty and how he had taken a job as a servant to keep his mother and father alive.

 _Don't let your mind wander too much. Now, he's just like any snotty rich noble. He pays no attention to where he came from._ I sighed as I walked right past the bread shop and had to backtrack. _But still, I'm sure there's the old him buried deep in his new persona somewhere, right?_ I shook my head at the thought. No, it couldn't be. Otherwise, he wouldn't be dating the no-good brat Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Hadn't he heard the rumors about her? She was a flirt, a butterfly that flitted from one boy to another.

Even Drew was better than her. At least Drew stuck with her one goal all the way through: Percy. She only gave up when he made it clear that he was never going to date her.

I was the only person who even moderately understands-no, understood him once. But clearly, now, I was just a transition that he ditched as soon as he got elevated. Tears started to pool in my eyes, threatening to fall out. I blinked them back furiously. I had promised that I wouldn't cry over his stupid affair with Rachel anymore. They both weren't worth it.

"Annabeth!" A familiar voice shook me out of my thoughts. A girl with spiky black hair and electric blue eyes headed my way.

"Thalia! Your mistress let you take a day off today?"

"Yup," she said, grinning. Then she saw my face and her grin melted. "Thinking about him again?"

I nodded mutely. Why couldn't I just banish the thought of his messy, jet-black hair, sea green eyes, and lopsided grin from my mind forever? It would save me a lot of pain.

"Don't worry. He'll eventually realize that she's not worth it, and regret his decision."

"But what if he doesn't?" I had had this conversation with Thalia a thousand times since he had left, but I still didn't believe if he could see under Rachel's superficial act.

"He will. Annabeth, I've already told you, you're a thousand times better than Rachel could ever be."

"But that doesn't matter now, does it? He's the heir to the throne and I'm just a dirty servant running around, completing errands for my mistress. There's no way-"

"There is a way. Why do you think there's a tale of Cinderella?"

"I thought you hated that one," I remarked, cracking a rare smile.

"A bunch of rubbish about fairy godmothers and such, but still. It's possible."

"It's just...He was the first one…" I started breaking down now. No matter how I restrained myself, I couldn't help but cry.

"I know, I know." Thalia steered me towards a secluded meadow, away from human civilization.

"I don't even know him anymore! No one was there for me when... _that_ happened." I erupted in a fresh volley of tears.

"Hey, at least you've got me, now," Thalia comforted me. "I'll never leave you like he did."

"That's the problem," I whispered. "That's what he said too, before. When I told him about my family, that's what he promised. I'm afraid-afraid that you'll go too…"

"Alright, I seriously promise you that the next time I see Percy, I'll go up to him and punch him in the face for doing this to you. Anyone who makes Annabeth Chase cry needs serious pain therapy from me."

I smiled through my tears. "Thanks, Thalia. You always make me feel better, somehow." _Percy did, too. And look how well that turned out_. A nagging voice at the back of my brain. "Shut up," I told it.

"Um, Annabeth?" Thalia was looking at me with a weird expression on her face. I hadn't realized that I had said that out loud.

"Sorry, a voice in my head," I explained. Thalia knew me well enough by now that when I said that, she probably shouldn't dig further. Especially when I had a crying fit. "Now, I've got errands to run. Bye, Thalia!"

"See you!"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Percy POV:

I sighed as I collapsed onto my bed. Even after all this time, why was I still thinking so much about her? _Because you liked her. Because she understood you. Because you broke that promise-_ _ **Shut up!**_ I mentally screamed at the nagging voice in my head. I loved Rachel now. _But you still love Annabeth. She makes you feel good whenever you talk to her-_ I growled in frustration. Why wouldn't that annoying little voice go away? Yes, I had broke that promise with Annabeth. But it wasn't like you had any choice when the royal family summons you to become the heir to the throne. They don't as much _ask_ you to go; it's more like take it or be publicly executed. Harsh. I know. But I still felt hollow inside for leaving her. That was probably the foundation that our friendship was built on. That was one of the most important promises in my life.

A knock on the door sounded. Groaning, I said, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Percy." Rachel's shrill voice cut through my thoughts.

I flew up from the bed, quickly opening the door. "Rachel! What are you doing here?"

"I thought you would be happy to see me," Rachel pouted.

"No, I didn't mean it like that. I am happy to see you, it's just…"

"Oh, yeah. Sally told me to tell you that there would be a banquet tonight. There will be special news announced."

"What special news?" I asked, suddenly interested. Banquets usually bored me, and I always would find some sort of excuse to escape outside. But special news? That would make things a lot more bearable.

"I don't know. It's a secret." She moved closer to me. "I'm sure you'll look amazing tonight."

I leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. "You'll look great too."

She giggled. "Thanks, Percy. I just wanted to hang out, you know?"

"Yeah," I agreed, but couldn't help feeling that the peace and quiet of this room was disturbed by Rachel. With Annabeth I never felt that way…

"Thinking about that peasant girl again?" Rachel somehow managed to end up in my arms, her head leaning against my chest.

"Uh...no. You're a lot better than her, anyways," I quickly said. In my mind, the nagging voice complained: _Liar. You know that Annabeth's a lot better._ _ **Shut up!**_ I mentally shouted at the voice yet again.

"If I am, then why are you still thinking about her? She's definitely not worthy for your rank. Plus, she's a dumb blonde. What good what it do you to have her?"

I bit back a sharp retort. Whatever Annabeth was like now, I knew for sure that she was most definitely _not_ a dumb blonde. It was against her nature to be dumb or reckless. "Annabeth is pretty smart, Rachel. It would actually be nice to have her in court."

Rachel took on a shocked expression. "Her? A _peasant_? In _court_? Percy, you couldn't even think about that!"

Looking for a way to escape talking about Annabeth even more, I muttered some excuse about getting ready for the banquet and managed to shoo Rachel out of the room. Relief and privacy at last. Rachel somehow always made me sort of uncomfortable, even though she was technically my girlfriend.

Annabeth...would she be here tonight at the banquet? I had no idea what happened to her after I left. Most likely she was still a servant, running errands for her mistress. Thalia was definitely coming. Her mistress was on the list of nobles invited. I wonder if Thalia knew about Annabeth…

Sighing in frustration, I wondered how everything seemed to steer back to Annabeth. No matter how I tried to forget, the image of her blonde princess curls and stormy grey eyes were imprinted in my mind.

Annabeth POV:

Groaning, I complained, "Why do I have to go to the royal banquet tonight?"

My mistress frowned. "It is an honor to accompany me to the palace. I can always throw you back out into the streets," she said sharply.

"It's not an honor when the prince who you thought was your friend ditched you as soon as he got elevated," I muttered, kicking at the gravel.

"What was that?" My mistress' brows creased even further into a frown.

"Nothing," I quickly said. "I'll go." The words taste bitter on my tongue. Great. I would have to see _him_ again, and with _Rachel_ , of all people.

"Good. You need to make yourself...slightly more presentable. Go and wash up in the servant's quarters."

Sighing, I trudged to the servant's quarters. I stopped short when I saw Thalia standing in front of the wooden house. "Thalia! What are you doing here?"

"My mistress is going to the royal banquet too. I'm guessing that you're going?"

"Yeah. I wish I wasn't."

"At least it'll give me a chance to punch him in the face."

Laughing, I said, "That is something that will make the royal banquet worth it. I just really don't want to see him and Rachel, though."

"Might as well slap Rachel across the face while I'm at it," Thalia said, grinning.

"I have no doubt that you will, knowing you." I smiled at the thought of Thalia marching up to Percy and Rachel and punching both of them in the face. They seriously deserved it.

~ooOoo~

Standing in the garden of the palace, I silently took in the scene. Here I was, in the territory of Percy. I never thought I would ever even think about being this near him anymore. He was only one hallway, two left turns, and one right turn away.

I had left the main room when I saw that Percy had entered with Rachel. I most definitely did _not_ want to see Rachel giggling and flirting with him the whole night. This garden reminded me so much of the one at home...My breath caught in my throat as I nearly started breaking down. No; I couldn't think about what happened. They were gone now. Every last one of them. I would join them someday, I knew. I would see them again, but not in this life.

I sat down on a stone bench near the pond, watching ripples move across the surface. Fish darted between the stems of plants in the water. I wished that I could be like them, carefree and without a single idea of what pain and betrayal were. I willed myself to not think about that anymore, not to cry. Suddenly, I heard a familiar voice behind me, and I froze.

"Annabeth?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Percy POV:

I entered the main room with Rachel clinging to my arm. Forcing a fake smile on my face, I took a deep breath and started with all the greetings and small talk that were required of the prince. Stupid honor. Stupid rules. I couldn't wait for dinner to start and for me to slip out into the garden. That was where I usually found refuge from painfully boring banquets and such.

"Percy?" Rachel asked after I had greeted the last guest.

"What?"

"Do you mind if I leave for a little while? I have something to do."

"Of course not," I replied, breathing a small sigh of relief. But it didn't make sense-I loved Rachel, right? So why was I so eager to get rid of her? Before I could think about it further, dinner had started and I was forced to take a seat.

When we were about halfway through the main course, I excused myself and rushed out to the garden, breathing in fresh air. Making my way towards the pond, I stopped when I saw a familiar figure with blonde princess curls, silhouetted in the moonlight. Her back was to me, so she hadn't seen me yet. She was here?

"Annabeth?" I asked cautiously.

She froze, but turned around slowly. "Percy?"

I didn't know what I felt at that moment. My emotions were all too mixed up for me to even decipher what I felt. A million thoughts raced through my head. "Oh, gods. Annabeth, I'm so sorry." In my head, I thought, _Seriously? You broke your promise to her and you clearly hurt her a lot and THAT's the best you can come up with?_

She was silent for a while. Then, "Percy, just please go away right now. You-you just don't understand." Her voice cracked.

It was at that exact moment that Thalia decided to barge in.

Annabeth POV:

 _No, it can't be. WHY?!_ I screamed in my head. Of all times to show up, he did now? Slowly turning around to face him, I said, "Percy?"

His eyes widened. "Oh, gods. Annabeth, I'm so sorry," was all he managed to say.

I had no idea what to do. This was the moment I had dreamed of, had thought of since he left. But when the time actually came, I had absolutely no idea how to handle it. Thinking about what to do, I finally said, "Percy, just please go away right now. You-you just don't understand." My voice cracked. I had just flat-out rejected him. Oh, god. Annabeth, what did you just _do_? I mentally cursed myself for being so stupid.

Thalia decided that this was the proper moment to come in to find me. "Annabeth? Where were you? I was searching for you and-" She stopped short when she saw Percy. Without another word, she marched up to him and punched him in the face.

Percy doubled over, holding his nose. When he finally recovered enough to speak, he whined, "Thalia! What the heck was that for?"

"That," Thalia said triumphantly, "Was for making Annabeth cry."

"Wait…" My brain was on overload. "How did you guys know each other?"

Ignoring my question, Percy managed to choke out, "You knew Annabeth this whole time?"

"Yeah." Thalia seemed to notice Percy glaring at her. "What?"

"Thalia Grace, this whole time…!"

I cut him off. "Nobody answered my question yet."

"We're...um...sort of cousins." Percy answered.

I turned towards Thalia. "What?" The disbelief must've been evident in my voice, because Thalia motioned for me to sit down. I hadn't realized that I had stood up when I saw Percy.

"Well, you know, when it was discovered that he was the missing prince, there was this whole matter about his family members being royal too. I was sent to the palace because I was his cousin…."

"Where she escaped in the next few days," Percy finished for Thalia.

"Oh. So _that_ 's where you got all those fancy dresses from." I managed to grasp what Percy and Thalia were saying.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "I was hoping that I could dump them into some trash can somewhere, but of course, everyone was like, 'those are such gorgeous dresses! Why would you throw them away?'"

"Anyways…" Percy turned back towards Thalia. "You knew her the whole time and you didn't tell me!"

"Hey, that would've just complicated things. Especially after what happened _after you left_ ," Thalia said pointedly.

I involuntarily flinched, knowing exactly what she was talking about.

All the anger seemed to drain out of Percy's face. "What happened?"

"Oh, nothing," I said bitterly. "Nothing that you would be concerned with, anyways. Where's your _girlfriend_ ," I nearly spat that word out, "Rachel?"

"She has something to do. Come on, Annabeth. I know that this isn't just 'nothing'," Percy pleaded.

Thalia turned to Percy. "She doesn't want to talk about it. Plus, why are you even with Rachel anyways?"

He seemed to think about that for a while, before answering, "Because I like her."

Thalia snorted. "I know you, cousin. You most definitely do not like Rachel. She's probably cheating on you right now."

Percy seemed agitated by the fact that Thalia was accusing Rachel. "She wouldn't!"

"Oh, she would," I replied grimly. "Right this second."

Percy looked at me, seemingly frustrated and angry. "You don't know her!"

"And you do?" I shot back.

Percy seemed taken aback for a while. Then, he said, "You don't have proof."

I snorted. "Sure, I don't but I will soon." I gestured towards two figures holding hands, strolling through the rose bushes to the pond. One of them had flaming red hair.

Percy stared at Rachel, probably unable to comprehend what was happening. That is, until Thalia hissed, "Hide, you idiot!" She pulled him into a cluster of nearby bushes, and I followed.

We watched silently as Rachel giggled and flirted with the other man. They sat on the stone bench by the pond, and slowly, ever so slowly, they started leaning in towards each other, until their lips met. When they finally pulled away, they were both gasping for air. Percy was trembling with anger beside me.

"Come on, Dylan. I'll show you around," Rachel said in a high-pitched, girly voice. The two slowly walked back towards the palace, holding hands and sharing an occasional kiss.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Percy shot up and exploded. "That's it! What is she DOING? Flirting with-with-"

"Dylan?" I supplied, knowing Percy most certainly forgot the man's name in his fury.

"Yes! That no-good flirt-"

"I suppose you'll break up with her?" Thalia asked.

"Uh, yes. What do you think?"

"So of course me and Annabeth are right-"

"Annabeth and _I_ ," I corrected sharply.

"-Annabeth and I are right," Thalia smirked.

"Oh, all right. You're right, okay?"

"So, tell me again why it was such a good idea to leave Annabeth?" Thalia asked.

I sort of wished she hadn't said that.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Percy POV:

I felt like I had been punched in the face(I actually was, thanks to Thalia) when Thalia asked that. "I-I-I don't know," I said, looking down. I felt absolutely awful for leaving Annabeth. All the feelings that I had tried to long to keep at bay rushed back in-guilt, frustration, sadness, and shame. "I guess I was too overwhelmed then to think clearly."

"Which is always why you need me to do all the thinking, Seaweed Brain."

I looked up at the smirking face of Annabeth. "Wait-you…"

Annabeth's features seemed to soften. "Yeah. It's fine. I understand."

"It's all my fault though. I should've just said that someone made a mistake-why would you even forgive me for that?"

"Because it's better than holding a grudge against you," Annabeth replied.

"Thanks...Wise Girl." I invoked my old nickname for her.

"No problem, Seaweed Brain."

I had almost forgotten Thalia was here until she cleared her throat. "Um...shouldn't you be getting back to the party?"

"Sadly, yes," I checked at the clock on the tallest turret of the palace. "They'll be missing me. I'll tell my parents about Rachel."

"Okay," Annabeth smiled at me, and I felt like I was floating with happiness. "See you around?"

Smiling back, I said, "As much as I can escape from the palace."

~ooOoo~

"Mom…" I began as soon as I reached her. "About Rachel…"

Her face lit up. "Oh! I almost forgot!" Turning towards the crowd, she announced, "Tonight, we are proud to announce that Prince Perseus, heir to the throne, is betrothed to Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Their wedding will take place next Saturday."

Rachel appeared by my side, hair slightly messed up and lipstick smeared. Smiling triumphantly at the crowd, she turned towards me. "Aren't you so glad, Percy?"

I nearly was about to knock her out. Instead, I forced a fake smile. "Uh…yeah."

People started whispering and chattering. Soon, everyone would know. I groaned with frustration. "Rachel? I need to go talk to my mom for a moment. It's...about our wedding," I improvised. I nearly lost my dinner when I said the words 'our wedding'. Me, marrying _her_? It was my nightmare now.

"Mom...I need to tell you something. Right now."

She smiled at me. "Can it wait, dear?"

"But-"

"Alright then, we'll start planning the wedding right now," my mother said to my father.

I nearly growled with frustration. Why couldn't they listen to me? I turned around and raced up the spiral staircase to my room. As soon as I rounded a corner to see a secluded alcove in front of my room. Just lovely. I had a perfect view of Rachel and Dylan in the middle of kissing. Seeing me, Rachel immediately jumped up. "It-it's not what it seems," she managed to say.

"Oh, is it?" I somehow kept my voice deadly calm. "Leave. Now."

Without a second word, Rachel and Dylan scurried out of the alcove, leaving me staring at disgust at the pillows thrown on the floor of the usually-neat alcove.

Returning to my senses, I quickly entered my room and wrote a letter to Annabeth, telling her the horrendous news. I didn't want her to mistake it-not after her just forgiving me after four years.

Annabeth POV:

"What do you mean, Rachel marrying Percy?" I asked Thalia, furious.

"That must've been the special news. The king and queen announced it." Thalia noticed the envelope that I was crushing in my hand. "What's that?"

"Oh, nothing. Just a letter from Percy."

"What does it say?" Thalia snatched the envelope from my hand and quickly uncrumpled it. After quickly scanning it, she finally said, "Well, it seems that Percy hates Rachel now."

"Yeah, but what good does that do if he's marrying her?"

"We'll find a way," Thalia promised. Suddenly, she asked, "Do you still like Percy?"

"I...I…" I was about to deny it. Why would I like him? The nagging voice returned. _You know you like him, Annabeth. You already forgave him_.

"Well?" Thalia pressed.

"Fine. I do," I said, looking down. "But he probably doesn't like me back."

"I know for a fact that he still likes you."

"And what does this mean?"

"Instead of Percy marrying Rachel, I could somehow find a way…" Thalia started with a sly grin on her face.

"Thalia Grace! You're _thinking_ about doing that? But I'm just a peasant!" _No, you're not. Your family was royal too..._ A nagging voice said. _**But they're gone now, so it doesn't matter**_ , I told the voice. I had told no one, not even Percy or Thalia, about who exactly my family was. For all they knew, I was from a poor family who couldn't afford raising another girl. My family...Tears started stinging my eyes.

Thalia came closer to me. "It's going to be all right, Annabeth. You don't know for sure if your family is gone…"

But I had heard the news exactly: 'The Royal Family of Maplecoast is Dead! The Kingdom has Perished!'

I was the last of the Royal Family. And how I hated myself for running away to the very kingdom who had guaranteed the destruction of my whole family. To even think about liking the person who had slayed my mother and father.

"I'm sure. And I could've saved them."

"Annabeth, don't blame yourself. You couldn't help it that we decided to go to war against Maplecoast."

"Maybe not. But-"

Thalia cut me off with a wave of her hand. "Annabeth! The past is the past. Look ahead into the future!"

"If it's a future where Percy and Rachel are married, then I would rather look into the past."

Thalia huffed. "Annabeth, you are the most impossible person I've ever met."

I cracked a smile. "Even Percy?"

"Yeah. Even more than Percy."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

Percy POV:

Rachel had the decency to stay away from me the past two days. It wasn't easy, with Mom always putting the both of us together every chance that she got. Spotting Mom talking to Rachel in hushed tones about something, I waited for Rachel to walk away before hurrying over to Mom.

"Mom! There's something about Rachel…." I began for the hundredth time.

"Oh, what's wrong? Didn't she like the wedding dress?"

"No, Mom, it's not about that, it's about…."

"Is she allergic to the flowers that are in the bouquet?"

"No…."

"Did one of her bridesmaids say she wouldn't be able to make it?"

"Mom! Can you just listen?" I was beginning to be exasperated by now. No, scratch that. Just really, really, angry that she just wouldn't stop jumping to conclusions.

She seemed startled for a while, before saying, "Of course, Percy."

"About Rachel, she seems to be dating another guy named Dylan. I doubt that she's sincere about this wedding. Maybe we should call it off."

She looked at me for a long while, before slowly shaking her head. "Percy, I thought you were different."

I was confused. "Me? But I thought this was about Rachel."

"Stop pretending that you don't know!" Mom was clearly getting worked up. "Guards! Take him to prison!" A pair of armed guards started marching our way.

"Mom? Why-what's happening?" The guards were almost here now.

In a tone she had never used before, she said icily, "I am not your mother. Do not call me _Mom_."

Now I was completely lost. "But you were the one who insisted in the first place!"

"Nonsense! I would never allow a spy for Maplecoast to call me _Mom_!"

That's when it hit me. Rachel and Mom(I still couldn't help thinking of her as 'Mom') must've been talking about this. And I thought that Rachel was at least half decent.

"Rachel and Dylan are the spies! Not me!"

"My son Dylan and his fianceé most certainly are _not_ spies. You, however, are a liar and cheater."

The guards had already handcuffed me and were dragging me along the tile floor to the dungeons. _Rachel, I promise; if I ever get out of that dungeon I will personally torture you._ I mentally screamed.

A dark figure appeared behind a huge column that supported the hallway. "Nico!" I was infinitely glad that the guards hadn't gagged me. He sent me a questioning look.

With a sigh, I mouthed, 'Rachel'. That was all he needed. Sending me a sign that meant 'talk to you later', he melted into the shadows and disappeared.

The guards dragged me down three flights of bumpy stairs to the dungeon. A gruff-looking man behind a broken plastic table barked, "Reason."

One of my guards with a mustache and a beard replied, "Spy to Maplecoast."

"Ah, so the it's the imposter prince here. I'll toughen you up in no time," the first man grinned maliciously.

 _For your information,_ I mentally retorted, _I don't NEED toughening up. Do you know how many hours I spent training for battle?_ I actually considered saying it out loud before I was literally thrown into a dark, damp, cell. At least I would have time to think.

With a sigh, I took in my surroundings. There was a narrow window high up on the wall with bars over it. Everything else was just a square, concrete cubicle. A cubicle that was inhabited with rats and was dripping water.

Suddenly, Nico materialized from the shadows in front of me. I jumped back, forgetting that I was chained, and ended up sprawling face down on the concrete floor. "Nico!" I complained. At least that's what I was trying to say. With my face mashed into the floor, it was more like, "Meeco!"

"What?" He asked innocently. When I managed to sit up and glare at him, he said, "Okay, fine. I promise I won't shadow travel anymore. But you should've seen your face!"

"I miss the funny point here," I said, glaring at Nico some more.

"What was going on?" Nico said, suddenly getting very serious.

"So...Rachel was cheating on me with Dylan-" I told him everything. When I finished, Nico had his 'I told you so' look on his face. He opened his mouth, but I cut him off. "And don't start with the 'I told you so's. I am definitely not in the mood right now."

"So, what are we going to do?"

"Get me out of prison and make sure that Rachel and Dylan don't take over the kingdom. Might as well tell Annabeth and Thalia too."

"And how long will this take?"

"I don't know. As fast as possible would be best."

Annabeth POV:

That red-haired, green-eyed demon! Of course, whenever I thought things were going to get better she comes along and ruins it all. But something about her voice and actions seemed familiar. Dylan also seemed somewhat familiar too….Of course! If they're the spies for Maplecoast, then they must be from Maplecoast. I'm guessing that they're somehow involved with the royal family.

"Annabeth! Earth to Annabeth!" Thalia was waving her hand in front of my face.

"Huh?" I was startled from my thinking reverie.

"As I was saying, my other cousin here, Nico," Thalia gestured towards a boy with pale skin and dark hair. He seemed to emanate darkness. "...just told me that Percy's in prison. We'll come up with a plan to break him out before Rachel and Dylan take over the kingdom."

"So, what's the plan?" I asked, still pondering about Rachel and Dylan's familiarity.

Thalia looked expectantly at me.

"Oh, you want me to come up with a plan?"

Thalia nodded. "As long as we get Percy free and make sure that Rachel and Dylan aren't planning to invade the palace, we'll be fine."

"So, anyone know their way around the dungeon?"

Nico spoke up. "I can shadow travel wherever you want to go. But it tires me out, so I can only shadow travel once or twice a day."

I nearly let out a squeak of surprise. Shadow traveling! A very powerful way of traveling long distances in a short amount of time. There were only a rare handful of people who had the ability. "Okay. We'll need a distraction in the dungeon so Nico can find the key and free Percy. Once we free him...Nico? Is it alright if we shadow travel again to escape?"

He said doubtfully, "We might need to sneak into the dungeon by ourselves and then shadow travel out. If it were only myself, I would be fine. But shadow traveling three or four people twice in less than 20 minutes…"

I nodded. "So we have a plan. When will we do it?"

"Tonight," Thalia responded. "Meet me here at 11:00."

"Okay," I agreed, and we each went our separate ways.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

Percy POV:

It was getting seriously boring in here. Other than the dripping sound of water and the scuttling of insects and rats on the floor, everything else was pretty much silent. It seemed to me that most prisoners were still sleeping. Reading the dirty plaque that hung outside the door facing me, I realized that most of the people here were spies from Maplecoast. Or at least the reason they were here was because of that.

Why would anyone even think about blaming me as a spy for Maplecoast? Especially if I had slayed the king and queen of Maplecoast myself. Of course, people being the people they are, probably would've said that I really didn't kill them, that I had hidden them somewhere, blah blah blah, all that other rubbish. Thalia was actually there but of course, no one could trust a servant's word(I don't really see what's wrong with that, considering that she _is_ technically royal, even though she doesn't want to be).

And then there was Rachel, who complicated everything. At the thought of her, I felt like I had to punch something, or someone. With nothing else, by pure reaction to my thoughts, I punched the concrete wall in front of me. Hard. Immediately, I let loose a string of curses while cradling my fist, which now was throbbing, swelling up, and changing color. _That was probably the stupidest thing you've ever done in your life. Even stupider than leaving Annabeth._ Annabeth! Oh, gods. How was I supposed to get out of jail with a swollen, purple-blue(more like black, actually) broken left hand?

Nearly blinded by the pain, I curled up in a ball in a corner of the cell while still cradling my fist. I don't know how long I stayed there like that, but the next thing I knew, I was awakened by the sound of a familiar voice.

"You drool when you sleep."

Annabeth POV:

The day went by slower than a snail. Time crawled by even slower when the mistress and all the other servants went to sleep. Each minute seemed like eternity. Finally throwing off the covers when it was still 10:00, I raced to the meeting point, deciding that waiting under the stars and being an hour early was better than lying awake and staring at the blank ceiling.

First to arrive was Thalia, who scared the daylight out of me when she sneaked up on me while I was studying the constellations. "Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Orion…" I mumbled while my eyes traced the patterns in the stars.

"Studying the stars, huh?" Thalia's voice came behind me, and I nearly whipped around and stabbed her with my knife.

"Thalia!" I sheathed my knife-one of my only gifts from my parents. I always kept it by me.

"Whoa there! No need to kill me when you need to save that energy for the guards," Thalia said, smiling. "Now, where's Nico?"

As if on cue, Nico stumbled out of the forest nearby, cursing when he tripped over a tree root. "I would've shadow traveled, but…" He trailed off, catching his breath.

"Alright then. Off we go!" Thalia looked at Nico.

He held up his hand. "I've got to...Catch my breath…." He panted. "Stupid tree roots!"

When Nico finally managed to recover from his walk in the woods, he whistled, and a huge black dog bounded towards him. And by huge, I mean prodigious.

"Good girl! Mrs. O' Leary, stay!" Nico managed to get in between Mrs. O' Leary licking his face.

"So...are we going to shadow travel on her?" I asked.

"Yeah. She's a hellhound."

"A what?" Thalia asked.

"A hellhound. A supernatual dog that's supposedly very ferocious," I explained.

Thalia eyed the dog warily. "And I suppose it's not going to eat us once we're within range?"

"No. She's tame, I promise." Nico was already on the back of Mrs. O' Leary. "Come on!"

The next thing I knew, I was traveling through a black void with a feeling that my skin was being peeled off, layer by layer in the cold darkness. We weren't traveling that fast, were we?

The tunnel of shadows spat us out right in front of the palace. Mrs. O' Leary immediately laid down and started snoring loudly.

"Umm...Nico? Any way to keep the other people from hearing her?" I asked.

His only response was a tired, "No."

"How long do we have to wait?" Thalia tapped her foot impatiently.

"Give me...20 minutes."

"What?! 20 MINUTES? You expect us to get Percy out tonight or tomorrow?"

"Thalia, he's our escape route…"

Nico was already half asleep when he protested, "You make me sound like an object."

Thalia snorted. "You might be, the rate you're moving. Now, 20 minutes, no more!"

~ooOoo~

I quickly ducked behind a huge column that supported the main hallway. Stubbing my toe on the base, I opened my mouth to at least yelp in pain before Thalia clapped her hand over my mouth. "Quiet, okay?" She whispered.

Nodding, I rubbed my sore toe while I watched Nico press an invisible button against the wall. On the button, two swords crossing each other started glowing blue, before fading while a door slid open in front of us.

"How…?" Thalia asked. "I didn't know there were any secret passageways!"

"You didn't stay long enough to figure it out. These were old war passageways to sneak around the castle. Everyone forgot about them." Nico stepped inside the dark passageway. Pressing another invisible button, the torches that lined the hallway burst into flames, one by one, to reveal a long corridor that branched off into two smaller corridors. Behind us, the door slid to a close.

"Which way?" Thalia asked, while I was busy marveling at the architecture.

"Left." Nico pointed to a darker hallway on the left. "Then straight until you reach the end."

It was eerily silent as we trudged along the hallway. The closer we got to the dungeon, the colder and damper it became. The air became stale and musty, as well. Finally, we reached another door.

Right before Nico was about to press another button, I suddenly said, "If we open the door, what's stopping the guards from seeing us?"

"Nothing. We'll just have to be ready," Nico replied simply.

"Great. That's supposed to make me feel better about this?" I asked incredulously.

Thalia started nocking her arrow, preparing to shoot in the face of her attackers. I reluctantly unsheathed my knife, while Nico pulled out a black sword that seemed to be made out of evil and darkness.

Seeming to see Thalia and I staring at his sword, Nico shrugged. "What? Stygian iron-really powerful."

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Just open the door."

Nico obeyed, and the door slid open to….


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

Annabeth POV:

"What?" Thalia snorted. "They should have better security here. All that preparation for nothing?"

I glanced at the sleeping guards on the floor, then quickly scanned the room for the keys. "There, Nico." I pointed to a hook hanging above a snoring man slumped down in his chair behind a white plastic table.

Quietly, Nico took the keys off the hook, but froze when the man mumbled, "Imposter prince...toughen up...no time." The man then rolled over and fell off the chair, hitting the floor. Sitting up and blinking groggily, he soon came to his senses and yelled, "Guards! Wake up, you stupid-"

"I suggest that we run," I said to Thalia and Nico before the man could finish his sentence.

"Agreed."

Thalia, Nico, and I took off into a full sprint through the tunnels while Nico fumbled with the keys. "Where is Percy's cell?" Thalia managed to squeeze out between breaths.

"That way," Nico managed to point to our left. "Then a right...second to last cell on the left."

Thalia spotted a closet nearby hissed, "Over here!" She pulled us into the closet and quickly closed and locked it.

"Got the key," Nico whispered.

"Shhhh!" Thalia shushed him. Footsteps pounded our way. We all froze and held our breaths as the footsteps neared us.

"Where did they go?" One voice asked.

"They couldn't have just disappeared!" A second voice said.

"Here, there's a closet." A third voice said as footsteps stopped right in front of the closet.

The doorknob jiggled. "It's locked," The first voice stated.

"They must be somewhere else-There! I think I saw one of them!" The second voice exclaimed.

"Where?" Footsteps thumped away to our right.

Thalia sighed in relief. "That was too close."

"Yeah," Nico agreed. "Let's go now."

Thalia quietly unlocked and opened the door, taking care to not let the hinges squeak. We quietly shuffled towards Percy's cell, where we found him curled up in a corner, fast asleep. A trail of drool snaked down his chin and onto his clothes. I chuckled to myself. _Such a Seaweed Brain, even asleep._

"You drool when you sleep," I said to Percy. His eyes opened, and for a while, our eyes met, sea green to stormy grey. Just like when we first met.

He quickly dropped his gaze and blushed, trying to wipe away his drool with his hand.

My eyes widened as I saw his left hand, which resembled and purple and blue meatball. It looked like it was broken.

"Percy! What happened?"

"I...uh...punched the wall…."

"What?"

"Long story…" He trailed off as Nico unlocked the lock with a satisfying _click!_

"There!" I heard a faint voice and footsteps that were heading our way.

"Hurry!" I hissed. The guards were almost here.

"Percy, get ready," Nico instructed.

"Ready for what?" Percy asked, oblivious.

"Shadow traveling," Nico managed to say before the guards were upon us.

"Nico! Quit talking and concentrate!" Thalia shouted, not bothering to be quiet anymore.

"Oh, you're not going anywhere." The man who had been snoring behind the desk sneered.

"Oh, yes we are," I replied just before we were sucked into the dark tunnel of shadow traveling. Again, I felt like I was traveling so fast that my skin was peeling off, before tumbling on the grass of a vaguely familiar place.

"Ow," I heard Percy mutter as he cradled his swollen fist. "Wait, is this…"

I didn't pay attention to what he said after that. My gaze was fixed onto a small object lying on the grass near my feet. My breath caught in my throat. _No...it couldn't be_. I bent down and picked it up, studying the small statue's features.

Running my thumb over the familiar groove of the owl's back, I couldn't stop the memories from coming to me.

" _Annabeth," my mother whispered frantically, her stormy grey eyes looking into mine. "Take this. Remember that I'll always love you...I'm proud of you." She pressed a small object into my hand._

" _Mom?" I asked. I was only five. "Where are you going?"_

" _They're taking you away…." My mother hugged me one last time before letting me go._

" _Mom?" I asked again, but she had disappeared into the darkness._

~ooOoo~

 _"What's that?" My little step-brother, Bobby asked. He reached over and took the owl away from my hand. "Let me see!"_

 _"No!" I snatched it back. "It's mine. I don't want you to touch it!"_

 _"But I want to!" He whined._

 _"No," I replied firmly. The owl had been my only token from my mother-the only thing that I could remember her giving me._

 _"Bobby, stop playing with that stupid owl and come here," my step-mom called._

 _Tears welled up in my eyes. "It's not stupid!"_

 _"Don't be silly. It's only a statue!"_

 _I opened and closed my mouth in rage. Only a statue! She didn't understand!_

~ooOoo~

 _That night, I packed my belongings into a small bag, stuffing the owl at the top of the bag. I took one last look at my room, before quietly hurrying out of the palace as quickly as I could. But I didn't notice that the owl had fallen out of the bag on the grass outside. I had never turned back, never hesitated as I continued on, leaving the owl lying there in the cold darkness of the night._

Now, I collapsed onto the grass and started breaking down. Everything that I had worked so hard to forget came back at me, in vivid detail. My mother, my father and step-mother's accusing eyes, my frustration and sadness. No one had really cared about me since my mother had left when I was five. Not until Percy and Thalia came along.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Annabeth POV:

"Annabeth…." I felt Percy's hand on my shoulder, but I twisted away. I was sick of putting up a strong facade-the one that most people saw. No one knew exactly how much pain I had gone through.

It had been the last straw when I was betrothed to Luke Castellan-the son of King Hermes of a nearby kingdom -when I was seven. Seven! Even worse, my younger brother, Bobby, was betrothed to Calypso Ogygia, a daughter of a rich noble, when he was only five.

Calypso and Luke...why did I always get the feeling that they were still alive? Did they have anything to do with Rachel or Dylan? The realization hit me suddenly. I started crying harder. I was so stupid not to realize it earlier. "Athena Minerva," I whispered, not wanting to call her my mother. It brought back too much, "Queen of Maplecoast, I'm sorry I let you down."

Little did I know, that started a lot of things. Like the hologram of my mom standing in front of me.

Percy POV:

"Ow," I muttered as my broken fist hit the ground. I should have been screaming in pain, but I suddenly realized where I was. "Wait, is this..." I hesitated. "The palace of Maplecoast?"

Thalia observed the ruins. "Yeah...I think so." Glaring at Nico, she accused, "Why did you bring us here?"

Nico was already out cold, lying on the ground snoring.

"Well, I guess he was kind of in a rush." I reasoned.

"Finally, Kelp Head makes sense!" Thalia exclaimed. "Quick, call the news reporters!"

"Oh, shut up Pinecone Face," I grumbled before I realized that Annabeth was on the ground, crying hard.

I walked over to her cautiously, not wanting to startle her. Placing my hand on her shoulder, I started, "Annabeth…" She twisted away from my hand, seeming to cry harder.

She whispered something that I couldn't quite make out. I only caught a few words, like 'Athena Minerva'. Before I could think about it and wonder who it was, a hologram of a strange woman appeared in front of Annabeth.

"Annabeth…" She started just like me.

Annabeth raised her head to look at the woman, her eyes red from crying. The woman continued, "I see you've finally figured it out."

Annabeth looked confused for a moment, before realization dawned her eyes. "I'm sorry...the owl fell out when I ran away. I just found it now." I could see that she was struggling not to cry again. My head was spinning. What was happening, and why did Annabeth seem to know the mysterious woman?

"You know that I can only appear if you call me, I presume?"

Annabeth nodded, and the woman turned towards me, her expression hardening. "I suggest you stay away from my daughter."

"Your...daughter?" I looked at Annabeth, then back at the woman. They bore a striking resemblance, with the honey blonde hair and piercing grey eyes.

"Mom…" Annabeth protested. "I understand that you hold a grudge against his father, but he's nice to me."

"I know what's best, Annabeth. Stay away from that sea spawn."

I spluttered. "Sea spawn?" I knew that my father ruled the oceans and seas, and had power over water (that I had inherited), but calling me sea spawn?

"Yes. Now, just stay away from my daughter and everything will work out fine."

"And if I don't?" I challenged her.

She glared at me. "There will be consequences."

"Mom, so what do I do about Calypso and Luke?" Annabeth managed to change the subject of the conversation. Who and who? I thought.

"Stay here, rest for a week. It will be a while before Nico is strong enough to make the trip back to the palace. Remember, names have power. That's all I am going to say." With that, she disappeared.

Thalia had seen the whole thing. Turning to Annabeth, she looked expectantly at her.

Annabeth sighed, getting the message. "I guess I'm going to have to explain."

"Yeah. A lot," Thalia replied.

Annabeth POV:

"Annabeth…" My mother started.

I raised her head to look at my mom. She continued, "I see you've finally figured it out."

I was confused for a moment, before I realized what she was talking about. _Names have power_. I remember that the phrase was engraved into the base of the owl. I had called my mother using her name and title, while holding the owl, and she had appeared. "I'm sorry...the owl fell out when I ran away. I just found it now." I was struggling not to let the tears spill out again.

"You know that I can only appear if you call me, I presume?" Mom said to me.

I nodded, and my mom turned towards Percy, her expression hardening. "I suggest you stay away from my daughter."

"Your...daughter?" Percy looked at me, then back at my mother. I saw realization dawn his eyes.

"Mom…" I protested. "I understand that you hold a grudge against his father, but he's nice to me." _Understatement of the year. A grudge? More like I'm-going-to-kill-you- on-sight._

"I know what's best, Annabeth. Stay away from that sea spawn."

Percy spluttered, "Sea spawn?"

"Yes. Now, just stay away from my daughter and everything will work out fine."

"And if I don't?" Percy challenged her, glaring at my mom.

She glared back at him. "There will be consequences."

"Mom, so what do I do about Calypso and Luke?" I managed to change the subject of the conversation, before the two got into a serious fight.

"Stay here, rest for a week. It will be a while before Nico is strong enough to make the trip back to the palace. Remember, names have power. That's all I am going to say." With that, my mother disappeared. I had wanted to ask her where she was now, but I didn't want to annoy her. Believe me; if you've seen my mom annoyed...you wouldn't want to know.

Thalia had seen the whole thing, and she looked expectantly at me.

I sighed, getting the message. "I guess I'm going to have to explain."

"Yeah. A lot," Thalia replied.

"So, where should I start?" I asked.

"From the very beginning," Thalia said.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

Annabeth POV:

"Okay, so when I was raised with my mom until I was five. Then my father and my step-mom took me away to the palace of Maplecoast. I had two step-brothers, Bobby and Matthew. Matthew was the heir to the throne, and even though I was older than Bobby, he was the next heir. My step-mom didn't like me very much, and always blamed me. I was the princess..." I winced at the title. I could almost hear my step-mom's voice whining, 'A princess should not complain', 'A princess should be proper and not play around', 'A princess should be polite to guests'. I decided to ignore the voice and continue on with my story. "...but my step-mom and my father didn't really tell anyone, since they didn't really like me. I ended up being betrothed to the son of King Hermes, Luke Castellan, when I was seven. Bobby was betrothed to Calypso Ogygia, the daughter of a rich noble, when he was five. I ran away because of it, and when I was twelve, I met Percy...and you know the rest."

"Gods, Annabeth, if I had known…" Percy trailed off. "That means that I killed your family?!"

"Yeah. And that technically, I am the only heir to the throne of Maplecoast, since my stepbrothers were killed in the dungeon."

Thalia said, "All this time and you didn't tell us?"

Percy jumped in again, "Did you like Luke?"

"I might've once, a little bit, but only as a brother," I watched Percy's face for any reaction. Why did he care anyways? "But now, about Luke and Calypso, I think that they're the same people as Rachel and Dylan."

"How...what?" Percy was at loss for words, and so was Thalia. I guess this was too much new information for them.

"Calypso is pretending to be Rachel, and Luke is pretending to be Dylan. They dyed their hair and put in colored contacts. They probably want to take over Atlantis, revive Maplecoast, and rule the kingdom," I tried explaining, though I wasn't sure if Percy's mind could take in any more information than what I had already given them.

"That makes sense…" Thalia said thoughtfully.

"We've got to go back to the palace right now," Percy said, agitated.

"You're not going anywhere with your hand like that and Nico knocked out cold," I replied sternly. "My mom told us to stay here and rest for a week. Luke and Calypso will get married the week after, giving us time to plan."

Percy held up his hand in a sign of surrender. "Okay, okay, got it. I'll try to find somewhere to stay."

Thalia snorted. "Like where? Every house here is demolished."

"He might be able to find a cave," I reasoned.

"Yeah, Pinecone Face," Percy retorted. "Ever thought of that?"

"Oh, shut up, Kelp Head."

Percy POV:

Lying down on the makeshift bed of leaves and grass on the floor of the cave, I glanced over at Annabeth. Her face looked angelic asleep-her hair framing her face in curls and her expression devoid of worry. Not that she wasn't as pretty awake. Even though I had known her since we were twelve and she was always cute, she was starting to become seriously beautiful.

"Stop staring at her, Kelp Head," I heard Thalia say.

"Thalia? You're awake?" It was near midnight now. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't fall asleep.

"Yeah. Couldn't fall asleep. So, do you like Annabeth?"

It was a good thing that I was sitting in the shadows. Otherwise, Thalia might've seen my face blush red. "Uh...Do I have to answer that?"

"Of course, you idiot. So, do you like her or not?"

"Um…." I stalled, trying to think of a valid excuse to not tell Thalia. "Uh…."

"Come on, Kelp Head. Just say it. We all know already."

"Then why would you want me to say it if you already knew?"

I could see Thalia rolling her eyes in the moonlight. "Ever heard of the word ' _confirmation_ ', Kelp Head?" Under her breath she mumbled, "I can see why Annabeth calls him Seaweed Brain, the idiot."

"Hey! I heard that!" I protested.

Thalia rolled her eyes yet again. "Just answer my question!"

A few moments of silence passed when I was debating whether to tell her. I don't know what made me say it, but eventually I confessed quietly, "Yeah. I do." I felt that I knew that I had liked her since we were twelve, but it felt different saying it out loud.

"Knew it," Thalia teased.

"Oh, so you ask me a question, I give you an honest answer, and you start teasing me about it? What a great friend you are, Thalia," I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Okay, fine. But still, I know that she likes you too."

"What?" I couldn't believe what I just heard. "I killed her family and broke our promise, and she still likes me?!"

"Hey, don't ask me, ask her. But yeah, she does like you, but she isn't sure if you like her back."

"I guess Annabeth isn't such a Wise Girl on these things after all."

Thalia snorted. "It's not like you're any better."

"And you are?" I shot back, smirking.

"Of course not. Boys are just so…" She shuddered.

"Hey, what about me?" I said, pretending to be hurt.

"Especially you." Thalia said, laughing. "What? You thought you were all high and mighty? Come on, I've seen you on a plane."

I shuddered at the thought of getting on a plane. The turbulence and air pressure were too much for me. "Like you're any better with being high up off the ground." Even though Thalia was the daughter of Zeus, whose kingdom was known for its advanced air forces, she was deathly afraid of heights.

"Oh, you did not just say that," Thalia growled.

"Yeah, I just did."

"You're _so_ going to get it now."

I leapt up from my bed of straw and grass and took off running into the clearing around the cave. Before I got too far, though, a jolt of electricity crackled up my spine, and I lost my balance, falling face-first into the dirt.

"Thalia!" That was the second time in 24 hours that I had fallen face-first onto the ground. And both times were because of my oh-so-loving cousins.

Thalia cackled with glee as she watched my epic face-plant from the entrance of the cave. "Done kissing the ground yet?" She called.

"Oh, shut up." A stream of water from a nearby brook drenched Thalia from head to toe. "Think of that as a complimentary shower."

Thalia glared venomously at me, now soaking wet and crackling with electricity. "If you weren't my cousin, you would be dead fifty times over by now."

"Definitely feeling the love here," I mumbled as I picked myself up from the ground. "Ouch, Thalia! How many times are you going to electrocute me?" Immediately losing my balance _again_ , I tumbled onto the ground. This time, I luckily didn't face-plant.

"As many times that it will take to hammer into that teacup head of yours that you are NOT going to insult me without paying."

"Yeesh, Thalia. You're the one who started it." I winced, knowing that she would electrocute me again for that comment. But it was worth saying.

Instead, she beckoned me to come closer. "I have something to tell you. It's about Annabeth."

I glared at her warily, though I did want to know what she was going to say about Annabeth. "Like I'm going to trust you after you electrocuted me _twice_ in one night."

"Oh, come on, Kelp Head. You know you want to hear what I'm gonna say."

"How do I know what you're saying about Annabeth is true?"

"She mumbles in her sleep."

I weighed the pros and cons of the situation (yes, Annabeth, I do think before acting, especially when it comes to Thalia) before curiosity got the better of me and I cautiously came closer by about ten steps.

"Closer…Closer…." Thalia instructed, until I was right in front of her.

"So?" I asked. She started leaning in towards me, and I was frozen in place as she came closer and closer...


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

Annabeth POV:

I awoke to find voices in the clearing.

"Done kissing the ground yet?" I recognized that voice as Thalia's.

"Oh, shut up." A stream of water from a nearby brook drenched Thalia from head to toe. "Think of that as a complimentary shower." That could only mean one person: Percy.

"If you weren't my cousin, you would be dead fifty times over by now."

I heard Percy mumble something as he tried standing up from the ground. "Ouch, Thalia! How many times are you going to electrocute me?" Key word: TRIED. Thalia electrocuted Percy again and he lost his balance.

"As many times that it will take to hammer into that teacup head of yours that you are NOT going to insult me without paying."

"Yeesh, Thalia. You're the one who started it." I shook my head, thinking, _Wrong thing to say, Seaweed Brain. Unless you want to get electrocuted for the third time that night._

Instead, though, I saw Thalia motioning for Percy to come closer. "I have something to tell you. It's about Annabeth."

"Like I'm going to trust you after you electrocuted me _twice_ in one night."

"Oh, come on, Kelp Head. You know you want to hear what I'm gonna say."

"How do I know what you're saying about Annabeth is true?"

"She mumbles in her sleep." _I mumble in my sleep?_ I thought incredulously. _Oh, please don't let her hear any embarrassing details of my life…._ I silently prayed.

There were a few moments of silence, before Percy started walking cautiously towards Thalia.

"Closer…Closer…."

"So?" They were now standing in front of each other.

I felt a pang of jealousy as Thalia figure started leaning in closer to Percy's….

Percy POV:

…And suddenly Thalia slapped me in the face.

"What, Kelp Head? You thought that I would really tell you something?" Thalia cackled, while I was bent over in pain.

"Seriously, Thalia. What is it with you and slapping people in the face? Is it you and Nico's mission to make my life miserable?" I muttered.

"Yes."

Suddenly, a small rain cloud appeared over Thalia's head. Correction: a small storm cloud, complete with small lightning flashes and thunder. Thalia tried to move away from it, but the storm cloud trailed right behind her.

"Isn't lightning and thunder supposed to be Zeus' thing?" Thalia complained.

"Well, there's lightning and thunder in a hurricane, which I can also summon especially as a gift to you…"

Thalia sent another jolt of electricity up my spine, but this time, I was better prepared for it and managed not to face-plant on the ground again.

The storm cloud, in response, started pouring rain at an alarming rate on Thalia's already-soaked figure.

Thalia glared at me. "Kelp Head…!"

"Pinecone Face…!" I mimicked her.

Another jolt of electricity crackled up my spine. "Don't mock me."

"Jeez, Thalia. There's only so much electricity a human spine can take."

"He's right, Thalia. This is...what? The second time this night?" A new voice chimed in.

"Fourth," I corrected, and couldn't help smiling as Annabeth stepped into the clearing.

"Hey, he was being too much of a Kelp Head."

"Percy's Percy-he can't really help that he's always a Seaweed Brain."

"You were supposed to be on my side!" I complained.

"How long were you there?" Thalia asked Annabeth.

"Oh...long enough to see you guys fight. And Thalia slapping Percy in the face."

I blushed. "You saw that?"

"Of course," she answered. "For a while I thought you guys would...you know…."

Thalia looked absolutely horrified. "Annabeth! Why would I ever kiss a _guy_? And especially _Percy_ , of all people?"

"Am I really that bad?"

"Yes, you are," Thalia replied, smirking.

"Okay, I've had enough of you torturing me. I'm going back...and DON'T fry me in my sleep," I warned Thalia.

"I won't if you get rid of this," she gestured to her little pet storm cloud above her.

"Oh, forgot about that." I waved my hand and the storm cloud dissipated.

"I'm still wet," Thalia glared at me.

I shrugged. "Your problem." I returned to the cave, but not before Thalia sent one last bolt of electricity up my spine.

Annabeth POV:

As Thalia leaned in closer, I had to restrain myself from marching over to her and slapping her in the face. Why was I jealous anyways? It wasn't right. It wasn't like Percy and I were dating.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding when Thalia slapped Percy (not that I wanted him to get hurt, but still….) Watching in amusement at the exchange between them, I decided to interfere before Thalia decided to fry Percy alive.

"He's right, Thalia. This is...what? The second time this night?" I asked, stepping into the clearing.

"Fourth," Percy corrected.

"Hey, he was being too much of a Kelp Head."

"Percy's Percy-he can't really help that he's always a Seaweed Brain," I said, smiling.

"You were supposed to be on my side!" Percy complained.

I was about to reply when Thalia asked, "How long were you there?"

"Oh...long enough to see you guys fight. And Thalia slapping Percy in the face."

"You saw that?" Was it just me, or did Percy's cheeks just grow a bit red?

"Of course," I answered. "For a while I thought you guys would...you know…." I couldn't bring myself to say 'Thalia and Percy kissing'. But then again, I had forgotten they were cousins...

Thalia looked absolutely horrified. "Annabeth! Why would I ever kiss a _guy_? And especially _Percy_ , of all people?"

"Am I really that bad?" Percy pouted.

"Yes, you are," Thalia replied, smirking.

"Okay, I've had enough of you torturing me. I'm going back...and DON'T fry me in my sleep," Percy warned Thalia.

"I won't if you get rid of this," she gestured to a storm cloud that was hovering above her. Probably a creation of Percy's.

"Oh, forgot about that." Percy waved his hand and the storm cloud dissipated.

"I'm still wet," Thalia glared at Percy.

He shrugged. "Your problem." He returned to the cave, but not before Thalia sent one last bolt of electricity up his spine, causing him to jolt upwards.

When he left, I asked Thalia, "Do I really mumble in my sleep?"

"Yeah. I heard 'Percy', 'Gorgeous sea green eyes'-"

"Enough!" I cut her off, blushing red. If Percy heard that...Oh, gods, the embarrassment.

Thalia looked amused. "You don't want him to hear?"

I suddenly became very interested in a spot in the grass.

"Oh, please, Annabeth. He likes you. He told me."

"Really?" I had just basically lied to him ever since he had known me. Why would he even like me?

Thalia snorted. "Both of you are the same. No one believes me when I tell them that the other person likes them!"

"You told him that I liked him?" I wanted to sink into the ground.

"Yeah. So?"

"Thalia…!"

"Isn't it a bit late to get into a full-blown fight?" Thalia asked, and I realized that I was actually pretty tired, even though I had already slept for about 3 hours.

"Fine. Next time…" I let my threat hang in the air, before turning around and walking back to the cave.

All I wanted was a good night's sleep for once. Was that too much to ask for? But noooooo. I just had to have a vision.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

Percy POV:

As I lay down on my prickly makeshift bed, I faintly heard Annabeth and Thalia talking.

"Do I really mumble in my sleep?"

"Yeah. I heard 'Percy', 'Gorgeous sea green eyes'-" Did Annabeth really say that?

"Enough!"

"You don't want him to hear?"

Silence.

"Oh, please, Annabeth. He likes you. He told me."

"Really?"

"Both of you are the same. No one believes me when I tell them that the other person likes them!"

"You told him that I liked him?" I heard Annabeth say as I thought, _Thalia told Annabeth that I liked her?_

"Yeah. So?"

"Thalia…!" I was thinking the same thing.

"Isn't it a bit late to get into a full-blown fight?"

"Fine. Next time…" Annabeth's footsteps neared the cave, and I closed my eyes, drifting into a strange dream.

Two people were hunched over a table with maps strewn across it and the floor. The royal map room. It was dusty misuse-the last time anybody had used it was in the war with Maplecoast a few years earlier. I knew that they were Rachel and Dylan-no, Calypso and Luke- by the looks of it.

"Hide your weapon in your dress, and I'll hide mine in my suit. Once we get married at noon, the army will invade the castle and we will kill the king and queen. We will send patrols out to knock out the guards by the gates and doors," I heard Luke saying.

I caught a flash of blonde curls hiding behind one of the columns across from me in the circular room. Annabeth? What was she doing here?

"Do I _have_ to kiss you?" I heard Rachel-no, Calypso saying in disgust.

Luke snorted. "It's not like I want to kiss you either."

"Make it short."

"Fine."

"Fine." The two moved apart from each other to opposite sides of the table, glaring at each other. I nearly laughed. How were they supposed to rule a kingdom together if they could hardly stand each other?

I saw Annabeth's face peeking out behind one of the columns. She caught sight of me and her eyes widened. _What are you doing here?_ She mouthed.

I shrugged. _I don't know._

 _We need to stop that wedding._

 _I thought you didn't like Luke?_ I teased.

She glared at me. _Not like that! You and your mind, Percy…_

 _Fine._

 _Fine._ I smiled as I thought of the resemblance of Calypso and Luke's conversation to ours.

"We got past Percy and his little smart-aleck Annabeth," I heard Calypso saying. Even from my distance from Annabeth, I could see her eyes narrowing at Calypso's insult.

"Speaking of which…." Luke turned towards me, pulling out a dagger. "We have some unwelcome presence here." As he lunged at me, I blacked out.

Annabeth POV:

I was in a circular room supported by ten huge columns. There was a round table covered with maps centered in the room. Hunched over the table discussing plans were two figures, which I could barely recognize as Luke and Calypso.

"Hide your weapon in your dress, and I'll hide mine in my suit. Once we get married at noon, the army will invade the castle and we will kill the king and queen. We will send patrols out to knock out the guards by the gates and doors," I heard Luke saying. So the wedding was at noon, which means that I'll have to sneak out during the middle of the day….

"Do I _have_ to kiss you?" I heard Calypso saying in disgust. I rolled my eyes. They were planning to invade the castle and Calypso was worried about kissing Luke?

Luke snorted. "It's not like I want to kiss you either."

"Make it short."

"Fine."

"Fine." The two moved apart from each other to opposite sides of the table, glaring at each other. I rolled my eyes yet again. How were they supposed to rule a kingdom?

A flash of sea green drew my eyes towards a column across the room. I saw Percy's face peeking out behind the column, and my eyes widened.

 _What are you doing here?_ I mouthed.

He shrugged. _I don't know._

 _We need to stop that wedding,_ I told him.

 _I thought you didn't like Luke?_ He teased, and I blushed red at what he was hinting at.

I glared at him. _Not like that! You and your mind, Percy…_

 _Fine._

 _Fine._

"We got past Percy and his little smart-aleck Annabeth," I heard Calypso saying. Oh, she did not just insult me by calling me a smart-aleck. My eyes narrowed.

"Speaking of which…." Luke turned towards Percy, pulling out a dagger. "We have some unwelcome presence here." He lunged at Percy, but his target disappeared before he could stab him.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding, but suddenly realized that if Luke could sense Percy, then he could also sense me. Sure enough, Luke was approaching my hiding spot quickly. "Well, what do we have here, Princess?" I winced at his old nickname for me. Glancing around at the room, I saw illustrations on the table that detailed different types of monsters; hellhounds, dracaenas, empousas, telekhines, etc. What where those for? Before I could process the information, I saw Luke's dagger slicing through the air towards me, and I blacked out.

~ooOoo~

I woke up to the sun cheerfully shining down on me, which was the exact opposite of my mood. I heard Percy groaning and shifting next to me. Turning to face him and sitting up, I asked, "Were you there too?"

"Sadly, yes." I smacked him on the arm. "Ow! What was that for? I have a broken hand, remember?"

I rolled my eyes. "Seaweed Brain, what we saw is important information. And that broken hand was your fault."

"Well I'm sorry that I can't be such a Wise Girl like you," he complained, earning him another smack on the arm from me.

"No wonder you and Thalia get along so well," he remarked, rubbing his arm. "You both like torturing me."

I raised my arm again, and he quickly scrambled out of the cave, trying to escape from earning another punch in the arm. What he didn't know was that I was a fast runner, and quickly caught up to him.

"Ow! Okay! I'll keep my mouth shut for now!" He yelped as I punched him in the arm yet again.

Rolling my eyes, I stalked back to the cave. When I realized that he was still standing where I left him, I turned around. "Are you coming to tell the others or what?" I heard him grumbling something about 'girls', 'scary', and 'confusing' as he caught up to me.

Smiling triumphantly, I entered the cave to find Thalia slapping Nico awake. "Nico! Wake up! You've already slept for a whole day!"

Nico managed to groan a bit to show he was awake. "Stop…"

"Not unless you sit up," Thalia said, punctuating her words with another slap.

"Ow! Okay, fine." Nico leaned against the back of the cave. "Did you really have to slap me?"

"Yes," Thalia rolled her eyes. "You sleep like the dead."

"Ouch, that hurt," Nico remarked.

"Oh, sorry. Forgot your dad is Hades and all," Thalia said casually. "What do they say? Like father like son."

"Thalia…." Nico growled.

I stepped between them to break it up. "Guys, we have something to tell you-"

"We?" Nico asked.

"Percy and I."

"Oh, of course you had to get all proper with the grammar," Percy said, standing beside me.

"Wait, are you guys da-" Thalia started, looked at Percy then at me.

We both blushed, knowing what she was hinting at. "No!"

"And they reject you simultaneously. That must hurt," Nico remarked.

"I should remind you that you're still weak from shadow traveling," Thalia threatened.

Nico shrank back against the wall. "Um...forget that you heard me. In fact, pretend I'm not here."

"Anyways," Thalia turned towards me. "What were you going to tell us?"

"About Calypso and Luke…." I told them about the dream Percy and I had shared, with Percy chiming in occasionally.

"So the wedding is at noon," Thalia stated when we were finished.

"Yeah."

"And the wedding date didn't move."

"Not that I know of, but I'm pretty sure it didn't move."

"And they have an army with them."

"Pretty much, yeah. There also might be monsters. But they might have been just trying to mislead us, since Luke could clearly sense our presence."

Thalia rolled her eyes. "You think too much."

"What can I say? It's a perfectly valid reason!"

"That discourages our only lead! Plus, it's better to be prepared."

It was my turn to roll my eyes. "Says the person who complained about being prepared to fight but ended up not fighting at all yesterday in the dungeon."

"I was nearly about to shoot the wall and that would've just wasted an arrow!"

"Fine, whatever you say," I replied, knowing that it was a lame excuse. Changing the subject of our conversation, I said, "Anyways, that means that we'll have a week off here. Be prepared for monster attacks from Luke. Percy, is your hand okay?"

"Um, does it look okay to you?"

I rolled my eyes. "Just checking. We'll have to find a way to heal your hand faster, since you do not want to be fighting with a broken hand. You would be useless."

"I think I know some sort of magical healing plant or something like that. I'll try to find it," Thalia piped up.

"Pinecone Face, I didn't know you cared about me so much!" Percy exclaimed in false gratitude, comically placing a hand over his heart.

Thalia scowled. "Don't get too used to it. Or I'll break your leg as soon as your hand is healed."

"There might be some plants in the royal garden. I think there was ambrosia there," I interrupted before Thalia really broke Percy's leg.

"Which direction again?"

"That way," I said, pointing towards our left. "Go straight until you see the ruins."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

Annabeth POV:

When Thalia had left, I turned towards the two boys. "So…we technically have a whole week to do whatever you want."

"Are you sure? Because knowing you, you'll just think about how to defeat Calypso and Luke," Percy teased.

I sighed. "Busted."

"Seriously, Annabeth. You really should take a day off."

"Yeah, I agree with Percy," Nico said.

I glared at him. "Since when did you become such an expert on me?"

Nico answered, "The day when Thalia introduced you to me."

I rolled my eyes. "That was two days ago."

"Exactly!"

I stood up. "I guess I'll visit the brook then."

"I'll go with you," Percy said, also standing up.

Nico huffed, "Okay. So you two think it's cool to leave me here all by myself."

"Yup, pretty much it," Percy joked.

Nico gave him a signature death glare.

"Okay, fine. You can come along," Percy relented. But on the way to the brook, I heard him muttering, "What is with those three? Always torturing me."

"Oh, so you think I torture you?" I teased.

He turned red. "I-uh-um-You heard that?"

"What do you think? I'm walking...what? One and a half feet away from you."

"Um…sorry?"

I laughed. "Seaweed Brain."

"Wise Girl."

"Kelp Head."

"Owl Face."

"B-" I was interrupted by Nico whining.

"How do you even keep track of all your nicknames for each other? I'm having a headache listening to them!"

Percy and I exchanged glances. _Three...Two...One…_ "Shut up, Nico!" We shouted simultaneously. Percy also added a complimentary shower, courtesy of his powers.

Nico, who was now dripping wet, started glaring at Percy.

"Uh...five second head start?" Percy asked nervously.

"More like one," Nico said, lunging at Percy. The two took off running through the woods, with Nico chasing Percy.

I sighed, shaking my head. _Boys will never change. Especially Seaweed Brain._ Then I heard a thump, someone saying, "Oof!" and another that screamed, "Oh, Kelp Head, you are so going to get it now. You too, Death Breath!" Guess who that was.

Running over in Thalia's direction, I heard a few crackles and Percy and Nico complaining about the shocks of electricity Thalia was directing at them. "Thalia! Please don't fry them alive!" I managed to say when I got where they were. Nico and Percy were on the ground, groaning.

"Don't worry. Got the ambrosia plant."

"And I guess that means you're going to play-"

Percy interrupted. "More like torture."

Ignoring him, I continued, "-with them first? You were supposed to use the plants to heal Percy's hand you know…."

Thalia glared at both of them. "Not my fault they barreled right into me."

"Okay! We're sorry!" Both of them whined in unison.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "I'm letting you go this time. But next time, I'm not going to be so easy."

They both gulped and nodded frantically.

When we were walking back to the cave, Percy managed to whisper to me, "Thanks, Annabeth. I owe you one back there."

"No problem," I smiled.

"Hurry up, you two lovebirds back there!" Thalia called, and both me and Percy blushed red and looked in the other direction, hurrying to catch up.

~ooOoo~

"Are we supposed to eat it or grind it into paste and rub it on?" Thalia asked.

"Eat it," I replied with confidence.

Percy groaned. "I was hoping that I wouldn't have to eat it."

"Come on, it's not that bad," I coaxed.

"Yes it is. How am I supposed to trust Thalia when she was about to electrocute me just five minutes ago?"

"True," Thalia confirmed.

I glared at her. "Not helping."

Nico chimed in, "I'm getting bored. Just eat it or I'll shove it into your mouth for you."

Percy glowered at Nico. "If you dare…."

"Guys! Percy, just eat it. Nico, just shut up," I directed both of them.

"Fine," both of them relented, shooting each other looks.

"Oh, and Percy? I know the plant appears to be your worst fear, but trust me, it will heal you."

"Are you sure?" Percy dangled the plant in front of him, holding it as if it were a poisonous substance. Which he probably thought it was.

"Sure. It was to keep monsters and unworthy people from eating it when not needed. Oh, also because if you eat too much, you will spontaneously combust."

Percy shuddered while still dangling the plant in front of him, and I could see the indecision in his eyes.

That was the exact moment a monster attacked us.

Percy POV:

I had to eat that...that...what was it again? Oh yeah, ambrosia or something like that. Anyways, to be short, I DID NOT WANT TO EAT THAT. Even if it would heal my hand, which I doubted it would(considering it was Thalia who picked it….)

"Come on, it's not that bad." Annabeth tried persuading me.

"Yes it is. How am I supposed to trust Thalia when she was about to electrocute me just five minutes ago?" I shuddered at the thought of it. If it weren't for Annabeth...

"True," Thalia said, confirming my suspicions.

Annabeth glared at her. "Not helping."

"I'm getting bored. Just eat it or I'll shove it into your mouth for you," Nico complained.

I shot daggers at him. "If you dare…."

"Guys! Percy, just eat it. Nico, just shut up," Annabeth instructed.

"Fine," we both whined.

I managed to force myself to pick up the plant, dangling it in front of my face. Oh, the horrors. How was I supposed to eat THAT?

"Oh, and Percy? I know the plant appears to be your worst fear, but trust me, it will heal you." Leave it to Annabeth to spout random facts about ambrosia.

"Are you sure?"

"Sure. It was to keep monsters and unworthy people from eating it when not needed. Oh, also because if you eat too much, you will spontaneously combust."

Spontaneously combust? Thalia gave me a plant that's supposed to heal you but if you eat too much you will die? What type of plant _is_ this?

Of course, this was the best moment ever for a monster to barge in and try to kill us.

"Percy! Just eat the stupid plant, okay?! You do not want to be fighting with a broken hand!" Annabeth screamed over the snarls and growls of a very large and ferocious hellhound that was most definitely not Nico's friendly pet.

"Oh, so even you admit it's stupid," I muttered underneath my breath, but tried tearing off a piece of a leaf and tentatively placed it into my mouth. Immediately, I felt like I was eating my mom's blue chocolate chip cookies again-warm out of the oven, with the chips still melting. My hand's throbbing also lessened a lot. That meant I didn't hesitate to devour the rest of the plant. Who knew there was a plant out there that tasted like chocolate chip cookies?

As soon as I felt better, I tried flexing my hand and only felt a slightest twinge of pain. Whipping out a ballpoint pen that my father gave me, I uncapped it and it grew into a long sword-my sword, Riptide.

"You distract it while I kill it!" Annabeth shouted.

"Hey, what about me?" Thalia and Nico said at the same time.

"Thalia, shoot at it. Nico, help Percy distract it."

After a few arrows, shouts, and slashes, we had a mound of monster dust in the middle of the clearing. We were about to trudge back to the cave before we saw five more hellhounds and ten dracaena emerging from the forest.

All of us groaned, "Oh, come on." Reluctantly turning around, about twenty minutes of hacking and slashing at the monsters rewarded us with sixteen piles of monster dust that blew away in the wind. All of us hardly had any scratches on us, even though we were panting from ducking and dodging a flurry of claws that came one after another in battle.

Once we were back in the cave with our few scratches cleaned with water, Annabeth immediately started talking. "I'm guessing the monsters were from Luke's army."

"How would he know that we were here?" Thalia asked.

"He probably has spies everywhere looking for us," I chimed in.

"Great. So we need to stop the wedding and defeat a whole army of monsters while he has spies everywhere that probably are going to kill us and I'm passed out from shadow traveling back. Any survival chances for me here?" Leave it to Nico to be all positive about this.

"Thanks for making me feel a lot better about this, Death Breath," Thalia remarked.

"You're welcome."

"Who's taking night watch tonight first?" Annabeth asked.

"Wait, what?" I had no idea where exactly Annabeth got the idea of taking night watches from. "Why?"

She rolled her eyes. "Seaweed brain, in case a monster attacks us at night."

"Oh." In the few moments of silence in the cave, Nico, Thalia, and I all exchanged glances. Then, all at once, we chanted, "Not it."

Annabeth sighed. "Oh well. I knew you guys would team up on me…."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13:

Annabeth POV:

Let's just say that in the next week, I learned some basic survival facts about living in the middle of nowhere with Thalia, Nico, and Percy:

1\. I definitely should not leave Thalia alone with either Percy or Nico without a full supply of ambrosia on my hands.

2\. Percy is not good at making small, controlled, fires.

3\. Nico isn't much better at that either.

4\. Going hunting with Percy is always going to be a failure (what can I say, when I'm with Thalia everything's alright).

5\. Electricity, skeletons, and water do NOT mix well.

6\. Never put Percy on night watch again, unless you have a death wish.

7\. Nico and Percy are not morning people when they were on night watch the night before. And Thalia…um, maybe I should just leave that unsaid.

8\. Don't trust Nico with a pot of boiling water (especially one that's dented from the ruins of Maplecoast) right after an argument with you, Percy, or Thalia.

9\. Never insult Thalia's archery skills unless you want to suddenly be hospitalized for the medical reason of somehow being struck by a lightning bolt on a perfectly clear day.

10\. And a few more things that I don't really want to remember….

We somehow managed to get through the rest of the week with a few *cough* _minor_ *cough* incidents that required a lot of ambrosia. I seriously am starting to worry about one of them spontaneously combusting from eating too much ambrosia in the last few days.

Anyways, I was on the last night—or technically, morning—watch for our time here. Watching to see if there was any movement in the clearing, I noticed that someone had sat down next to me near the entrance of the cave.

"Hey." It was Percy.

"Hi yourself," I replied, not bothering to look over at him. Awkward silence fell between us.

"So, nice week it's been, huh?" Percy was the one who broke the silence.

I snorted. "Nice? Too many near-death experiences to call it 'nice'."

"I already apologized for burning down that patch of the forest!"

I rolled my eyes. "Still responsible for falling asleep on the night watch."

"I was sleepy! Staying awake from midnight to three is a hard task!"

"One that I've accomplished now. From midnight to _six_ , no less."

Percy protested, "Well not everyone is as good as you are!"

"You mean it?" I teased.

A pause.

"Yeah," was his soft answer.

I was almost speechless, struggling to come up with what to say next. How had the conversation gone from awkward to teasing to serious all of a sudden?

Another awkward silence commenced, while both of us were staring straight ahead into the clearing. I almost wished that a monster would come barging in to save me from having to talk and break the silence. At least it would give me something to do.

"You never really did tell me what happened," I said suddenly. Percy didn't have time to tell me how exactly he was separated from Queen Sally and King Poseidon before he was whisked off to the palace.

"Oh, um…." He was quiet for a while.

"You don't have to tell me," I added quickly.

"No, it's fine. It was only when they came that they told me. So, apparently, when we were on a trip to visit Olympus for the semiannual gathering, a monster attacked our hotel and basically burned it down. I guess my parents were in a hurry so it wasn't until a few hours later that they realized that I was left behind. When they got back to what was left of the hotel, the couple had already found me and taken me away to their cottage, and you know the rest; how they tracked me down based off of the villager's gossip and everything."

"Oh," was my incredibly intelligent reply. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Your past wasn't that great, either. I guess it's something that we both have in common."

"I wish it weren't that way, though."

This time, the silence was a comfortable one, as we watched the sun rise—the sky slowly colored with oranges, pinks, and golds. The grass in the clearing sparkled with the morning dew, and flowers welcomed the sun with their cheerful blossoms. It was like a scene you would see in a fairytale—unbelievably perfect and seemingly touched by magic.

The moment was broken by Thalia groaning and sitting up. "I hate night watch. I only get to sleep six hours."

"No one likes night watch. But at least we know we won't get attacked by any monsters. _Percy._ "

"Not my fault that the Minotaur decided to attack then!"

"Your fault for falling asleep. If it weren't for Thalia, we would be dead."

"Yeah Kelp Head. If it weren't for me…." Thalia chimed in.

"Okay, fine. I already apologized fifty times already!"

"Apology not accepted," Thalia replied. "For the fifty-first time."

"Anyways, we need to wake up Nico—" I didn't get the chance to finish my sentence before Thalia already had slapped Nico awake.

"Ow, Thalia! Every day! Why?!"

"Most effective way. Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to wake up." Thalia smirked. "Again, you sleep like the dead."

"I'm just going to ignore that for the hundredth time this week."

I groaned. Why did I think we could survive just five measly minutes without arguing? "Guys! Stop arguing already!"

Percy and Nico pointed at Thalia. "She started it!"

Thalia rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't have started if you two weren't always complaining."

Percy and Nico opened their mouths to retaliate before I cut them off. "Alright. So, we're leaving this afternoon, staying the night at our respective houses, and then meeting at the front of the castle at ten o' clock. Okay?"

"Yeah, but where am I staying?" Percy asked.

"With Thalia."

He groaned. "Why can't I stay with Nico?"

"He lives in the palace, Kelp Head."

"Fine," He relented.

Just when we were preparing to leave, there came snarls, growls, and hisses in the forest, surrounding the clearing. Emerging from the forest was around a hundred different monsters, encircling the four of us.

 _Luke's army,_ I thought. _There's no way that we can fight all of them with just the four of us._ "Nico? Up for shadow traveling back?"

He nodded mutely, and once again, we were pulled back into the cold, dark tunnel of shadows. For the second time in less than a week, I felt like my skin was being peeled off layer by layer. We landed right in front of the castle, of all places.

Nico passed out immediately, while Thalia, Percy, and I were thinking the same thing: _Oh, this is not good._


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

Annabeth POV:

Three guards were standing in front of us, blinking rapidly, as if questioning what had just happened. The middle one retaliated first.

"You!" He barked at Percy. "Imposter prince, throw in the dungeon."

He turned to Thalia and me. "As for you two accompanying him, and the boy down there, dungeon as well."

The next thing I knew, the four of us were chained and shackled in the same small cubicle.

"We have to get out of here," Percy said, agitated.

I rolled my eyes. "No, we're going to rot away here while eating chocolate bunnies. OF COURSE WE'RE GOING TO GET OUT OF HERE!"

Percy winced. "Gods, Annabeth. No need to burst my eardrums."

"Sorry, just…the nerves and everything."

"Yeah. What was with the 'Names have power'?"

I panicked when I realized that I had left the owl in the cave in my haste to get out of there. "Oh, no, no, no. This is not happening…."

"What?" Thalia asked.

"There was this owl my mother gave me. It had 'Names have power' engraved on the base. I think it has something to do with defeating Calypso and Luke."

"So?" Percy asked innocently, oblivious to my troubles.

"So I left it back at the cave."

Silence in the cell as Thalia and Percy processed the information.

"Are you sure we need the owl?" Thalia asked.

"Not completely…more like 85% sure."

"Any plans?" Percy asked, hopefully looking at me.

"Sorry. For once, out of plans." I let out a sigh of defeat. "And I don't know what to do with Calypso and Luke, either."

~ooOoo~

Percy jolted upright. "Annabeth! I think I know someone who can help."

I was startled out of my thinking reverie. "You do?"

"Yeah. His name is Grover Underwood, a close friend of mine."

Thalia and I gasped. "Grover? You know him?"

Percy looked surprised. "You know him too?"

"Yeah. Duh. He's one of my friends too," Thalia said first.

"Same here. He was one of the people who helped me when I was running away. So, how do we contact him?"

"I have...sort of this link to him. I can tell if he's in trouble and he can tell if I'm in trouble."

"Can you try contacting him now?" I asked, hopeful.

"Uh...sure. I think it's mostly in dreams, though."

"Oh. Then make sure you're getting some sleep tonight."

"Whatever you say, Wise Girl," he smiled.

Percy POV:

I saw Grover sitting on a stump in the middle of a vast strawberry field, playing his pipes. "Grover!" I called out to him.

"Percy?" He stopped playing. "What's up?"

"Grover, right now Thalia, Nico, Annabeth, and I are in the dungeon. We have to stop Calypso and Luke from getting married."

"So you need me to get you out," Grover finished my thought.

"Uh...yeah. Would you also be able to stop by the ruins of the castle of Maplecoast? There's a cave there with a statue of an owl in it."

Grover shook his head. "Sorry Percy, but getting there takes nearly a whole day from where I am."

I grimaced. "Okay, well, see you when you get us out? Cell is second to last cell on the right in hallway UC."

"What did you do this time? An unforgivable crime…but sure. I'll be there by ten in the morning."

"Thanks, Grover."

"Anytime," he responded, and my dream melted away.

I woke up to find Annabeth staring at me. "So?" She prompted.

"He'll be able to get us out by ten... But he can't get the owl."

Annabeth looked slightly dejected.

"Hey, it's going to be fine. Just go out there and do whatever you have to do with Luke and Calypso."

"Thanks, Percy. I hope you're right." She managed a weak smile.

"What time is it anyways?"

"Four hours until noon."

"Oh, darn. We don't have that much time."

She sighed. "Yeah. But we have to wait in agony for two more hours, which makes it seem longer."

Annabeth POV:

I glanced at Thalia, Percy, and Nico, who were all sleeping on the floor. I was the only one awake—trying to think of what the 'Names have power' meant. When do names matter?

I could name a few times—when we were crowning a king/queen, when we were giving honors to important people who had made a difference, and usually when we were introducing ourselves to people of high rankings to impress them. In short, names had power mostly in court, but I couldn't think of how any of these could apply to our situation right now.

Unless…I think I had read somewhere about ancient customs in court. There was something about how in ancient times there was usually spells cast to prevent mutiny against the king/queen or to name a new Oracle who gave prophecies. Most of them only could apply to royals, no matter if they were crowned or not. But that was dangerous with royal family members who had committed crime, and the customs had faded away.

I wonder if any of those spells had anything to do with this. But before I could think about it more, my eyelids grew heavy and I drifted into a dreamless light sleep.

~ooOoo~

I swear, every minute was an hour of agony to me. Why could time just hurry up? I was jumping at every little noise, and the tension was also evident in Thalia, Percy, and Nico. _Calm down, Annabeth. Grover is going to come soon._ Soon. I had no idea how much longer I could wait. If 'soon' was half an hour, I wouldn't be able to wait that long. I would have paced around the cell muttering complex math equations to myself to calm myself down, but of course, the stupid shackles prevented me from doing so.

~ooOoo~

Grover better have a good excuse for coming this late. The wedding has already started and he STILL hasn't come. Normally, I would have been okay with coming a little late. But when a whole kingdom is depending on your timing, it's not like you can come two hours late and still have a kingdom to save.

Maybe this plan won't work after all.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15:

Percy POV:

"Why isn't he here yet?!" Annabeth said in exasperation for the hundredth time. I'm sure she would've also paced around the cell like crazy, but the shackles prevented her.

"I don't know! We're going to just have to wait. He might be held up or something!" I replied for the hundredth time, but truth to be told, I was getting nervous. Only about a half hour remained until the wedding, and Grover hadn't shown up yet.

Thalia was also getting nervous. She was constantly sending sparks of electricity flying everywhere in the cell. Nico looked both tired and nervous, as well. This cell seemed a bit darker than the rest, and the plants that grew in between the cracks in the concrete withered and died.

As I faintly heard the music of the ceremony starting, I was close to punching the wall again. To say I felt like I had a nervous elephant stampede going on inside of me would be the understatement of the year.

Annabeth started muttering complex math equations to herself and solving them. Thalia nearly electrocuted us five times, and Nico...well, let's just say he pretty much was emanating darkness at an alarming rate.

When we heard the guards yelling, shouting, and thundering around in the dungeon, we all seemed to relax a bit. Grover was here, even though he might've been still running around in the hallways to escape from the guards.

Finally, we heard Grover bleating, "Sorry! Tried to hide from the army the way here, and the guards were chasing me in every direction but this hallway."

"Okay, what matters is that you're here now. Got the keys?" I asked.

"Yeah." He quickly unlocked the door and all of our chains.

"I owe you a lot, Grover. Thanks."

"It's fine."

At this time, we heard snarls, hisses, growls, and thundering footsteps above us. Grover's eyes widened. "The army! They're already here!"

Annabeth groaned. "Let me guess-an army of monsters?"

Grover nodded frantically. "I'm out of here!"

Thalia and Nico were running through the hallways back to the entrance of the dungeon, weapons in their hands. We hurried after them, bursting into a battle scene in the great hallway. Monsters of all sorts and kinds were attacking the palace guests, but Luke, Calypso, the queen, and the king were nowhere to be seen. Thalia and Nico were already battling an empousa and a dracaena. Annabeth turned to me. "Considering this might be our last time seeing each other…." She trailed off and kissed me. I was shocked for a while, but then kissed her back. I became unaware of the surrounding battle, and focused on the feel of Annabeth's lips on mine, and her lemony scent. It was like heaven. After a few seconds, we broke off, and Annabeth asked, "Where's the throne room?"

"Straight on until the end," I answered, still slightly in a daze.

"Thanks, Seaweed Brain," she said, smiling at me before turning around and racing towards the throne room.

I was hyperventilating(yes, a long word. Annabeth taught me) _She kissed me! She really did kiss me! Does that mean she likes me?_ I didn't have a chance to savor my happiness, though, before I got attacked by a hellhound and was forced into battle.

Annabeth POV:

I looked around at the battle scene in front of me, before turning towards Percy. Trying to muster up all the courage I had, I said, "Considering this might be our last time seeing each other…." I didn't finish and leaned over to kiss him. He might've been a little surprised, but after a while he retaliated. His lips were soft and he smelled like the ocean. I would've gladly stayed that way forever, but I reluctantly broke off the kiss to ask, "Where's the throne room?"

"Straight on until the end," Percy replied, with a slightly far-off expression to his eyes and a small smile playing on his lips.

"Thanks, Seaweed Brain," I smiled at him, trying to memorize his sea-green eyes, jet-black hair, and lopsided grin before I left. Turning around, I sprinted towards the throne room, where Calypso and Luke were facing off against Queen Sally and King Poseidon.

"You really thought I was your son?" I heard Luke sneer as I burst into the throne room. The king and queen were tired and panting, while Luke and Calypso were both soaking wet. Four pairs of eyes turned towards me. Four mouths were hanging open.

"A-Annabeth?" I heard Luke stutter.

"Is it really you?" Calypso asked.

"Yeah. No thanks to you two, _Luke_ and _Calypso_." I put special emphasis on their names. _Names have power, names have power, names have power,_ I was chanting in my head.

"Well listen here, once I'm finished with these two," Luke gestured towards the king and queen, "I'm killing your precious little Percy and his friends. I might spare you though."

 _Names have power, names have power, names have power, Think, Annabeth, think!_ Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the king and queen slowly inching their way out of the room, unnoticed by Luke and Calypso.

"I will love to see the look on your face when I slowly torture him…" Luke was still rambling on, while Calypso was nodding in agreement.

"We shouldn't spare her, Luke. She's just going to get in the way," Calypso complained.

"You should stop," I said, icily calm. "Why would you even want to kill for fun? To kill all these innocent people who have done absolutely nothing to you?" Percy especially. _Names have power, names have power, names have power..._

"And why should we even listen to you annoying little brat? You're absolutely nothing. Even your mother abandoned you," Calypso taunted.

Oh, that did it. "DON'T BRING MY MOTHER INTO THIS!" I brought out my knife.

"Again, why should why listen to you, who probably doesn't even know how to use that knife?" Luke asked, icily calm while I was fuming. Didn't know how to use my knife! Of course I did!

 _Names have power, names have power, names have pow-That's it!_ I wore I small smug smile on my face, knowing that I had stumbled upon the right answer.

Calypso was looking at me weirdly. "We're about to kill you. Why are you still smiling?"

"Oh, but you aren't going to kill me." I took a deep breath. _Please let this work_.

Percy POV:

"You idiots! We're here to help you!" I heard Thalia screaming.

I rolled my eyes. Hooray. The royal army had finally arrived and apparently was more focused on killing us than the monsters. As I stabbed another dracaena in the chest, I sprinted towards Thalia, who was fending off four different monsters at the same time.

When the soldiers saw me, they all came charging in my direction. Thalia was screaming all sorts of different synonyms for 'idiot' at the army. "Imbeciles! Nincompoops! Nitwits! Seriously, don't you SEE us trying to kill the monsters?!"

Instead of listening to Thalia, one of the soldiers yelled, "There! The imposter prince is over there!"

I groaned inwardly. How stupid could they get? We should've made a banner that said in big, bold, capital letters: **WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU GUYS, YOU IDIOTS!**

I focused on trying to find a water source nearby, and was overwhelmed by the response. Of course….our palace was near the ocean and had ponds, lakes, and fountains everywhere! I felt a familiar tugging sensation in my gut as the fountain in the middle of the hall exploded, instantly demolishing several nearby monsters. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nico battling with a skeleton army and Thalia shocking several monsters.

Forming a mini-hurricane around me, I hacked, slashed and killed many of the monsters that dared to venture in my path. The army was standing there, dumbfounded by the scene in front of them. I heard one of them saying to another, "Maybe he really is the prince." I rolled my eyes. _Maybe? The fountain just exploded because of me and I just created my personal hurricane and you think that MAYBE I'm not an imposter?_ Thalia and I screamed at them while fighting the monsters, "Stop standing there! Fight the monsters, you morons!"

When the army finally accepted that the three of us actually were on their side, we demolished the rest of the army quickly. Once the last monster had disintegrated, Thalia asked, "Where's Annabeth?"

"Throne room," I replied, and all three of us rushed towards the throne room, stopping short when we saw Annabeth.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16:

Annabeth POV:

"I, Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena and Frederick Chase, princess of Maplecoast and the heir to the throne as the only royal descendent, shall bind Luke Castellan-son of Hermes and May Castellan, prince of Ashgrove-and Calypso Ogygia-daughter of Atlas and Tethrys Ogygia- to my services as subjects of Maplecoast. They will have to obey my commands as the supreme ruler of the kingdom of Maplecoast." I looked at their shocked faces as I spoke the long-forgotten words for binding subjects to royalty.

Calypso stuttered out, "But...but…."

Calmly, I commanded them, "Stop. The kingdom of Maplecoast will remain in ruins. For now, I suggest you stay here until I can deal with you, and DON'T HURT ANYBODY." I turned to walk out the door of the throne room.

Luke protested, "Why are we even scared of you anyways? You bound us to you. Big deal. We don't have to follow your orders."

I turned back, flashing an evil grin. "Oh, but did you forget the punishment for disobeying the binding spell?"

Luke was oblivious, while Calypso's face paled. She clearly knew what it was. "Luke…." she started nervously, putting a hand on his shoulder.

He shrugged it off. "What is it?" He asked, smirking at me.

"Oh, for one, you get cursed with bad luck for the short time you are alive. Two, it's worse than being killed with gorgon's blood. Three, the death comes slowly and painfully, taking a long time. Four, you stay in Tartarus for eternity, experiencing the same pain you went through when you were dying. Hope you enjoy it." I smiled and walked away, leaving a pale-faced Luke and Calypso. As I exited the throne room, I saw the king and queen hiding just outside the door. They stepped out when they saw me.

"Annabeth, is it?" King Poseidon started. I nodded. "Thank you for your help back there. I see even though you're the princess of Maplecoast, we can trust you. Percy is lucky to have you."

"Why did you think Percy was a fake, anyways? He has your powers, and he looks like you." That was the one question I had been itching to ask the king and queen. They exchanged glances, before the queen spoke.

"There used to be this boy called Triton. He had claimed to be the missing prince and said that he had water powers to prove it. He demonstrated for us, and we believed him, until one of the people helping him trick us let the secret out."

Poseidon continued with the story from there. "It turned out that he was faking all the powers, so from then on, we have learned not to completely trust people who say they have powers. Also, you know how easily Luke and Calypso changed their appearances. Looks cannot be trusted in this matter."

"Oh," was my brilliant reply. Suddenly, Percy, Nico, and Thalia came running down the hallway, stopping when they saw me with the king and queen.

"Is everything alright?" Percy asked me.

"Yeah, it's fine, Seaweed Brain. How's the monster army?"

"Demolished with some help from the royal army," Thalia reported. "When they actually comprehended that we were on their side."

"Are they dead?" Nico asked.

"No, I bound them with the binding spell and ordered them not to hurt anybody."

"The what spell?" Percy asked, completely confounded.

"Explain to you later."

Percy then realized something. "Um...did you tell them about…you know what?"

"Yeah. They know."

Percy looked at his parents, surprised. "You're okay with that?"

"Of course, honey. You're lucky to have a girl like her," Queen Sally said.

Thalia looked between us. "You mean you guys are…."

"Yup," we answered her in unison.

"Did you guys already kiss?"

I blushed, thinking about the kiss. "Um...Only once."

"When? How did I not know about this?" Thalia demanded.

"Because you were too busy fighting the monster army," Percy answered, also blushing slightly.

"Okay. But that doesn't mean I want to see you two kissing every day, am I clear?" Thalia sent her message with a glare at Percy, especially.

"Very," Percy answered meekly. Probably not wanting to be electrocuted again. Then his stomach growled. "Um...anyone have food?"

We all laughed, and it felt good not to worry about anything anymore.

~ooOoo~

That night, while Percy's parents threw a feast for Percy and me, we slipped out into the garden for a nice walk.

"So, what was with the binding spell or whatever?" He asked.

"The binding spell was a spell that bound subjects of a kingdom to royalty, and they had to obey the commands the ruler gave them."

"I'm guessing they don't do that anymore?"

"Nope. Too cruel and harsh, I think. But exactly right for Calypso and Luke."

"What happened to them?"

"I'm guessing they were thrown in the dungeon. Not sure if they'll execute them or not."

"From personal experience, I think that the dungeon isn't exactly the most high security place…."

I snorted. "No kidding. But I ordered them to stay there and listen all orders given to them."

"That's a relief. Anyways, there's this place I want to show you…." He said, leading me towards a secluded pavilion near a lake.

"Wow…." I breathed, taking in the view. The moonlight shone upon the surface of the lake, which was rippling with the movements of the fish underneath. Water lilies that were waving in the slight breeze were silhouetted perfectly against the white background of the water. Shells of all sorts and kinds were scattered around the shores of the lake.

We sat down side by side in the center of the pavilion, gazing at the lake in comfortable silence. Percy was the one who broke it.

"You know, Annabeth, those four years when I was prince and everything, every day I was thinking…." He trailed off and looked at me. I was trying not to smile as he awkwardly tried to voice his thoughts.

"You're laughing at me," he complained.

"I am not!" I replied indignantly.

"You are _so_ not making this easy, you know that, right?"

"Get used to it, Seaweed Brain...I'll never make things easy for you," I said, laughing as I put my hands around his neck. When we kissed, it felt perfect. A perfect ending to the last week of misadventures.

Of course, there was absolutely no privacy when two certain people *coughThaliaandNicocough* are your boyfriend's cousins.

"You two need to cool off," I heard Thalia say, and I could almost see Nico with an evil grin on his face.

"The lake!" They both exclaimed, and carried us to the lake, dumping us in the water with us still holding hands.

But of course, when your boyfriend is the son of Poseidon, you always have the last laugh when it comes to water. He made a bubble of air underwater while our friends were getting impatient up on the shore, waiting for us to come up.

Long story short, it was the best underwater kiss of all time.

* * *

 **Not the best ending...couldn't really think of anything else. I hope you guys liked reading it(if you didn't quit after chapter 1). I'll be posting the epilogue soon. Thanks for reading and please review!**


	17. Epilogue

Epilogue:

Athena POV:

Alright, I've got to admit it; I do feel sorry for the son of Poseidon. Of course, the reason why he got separated from his family was his own idiot dad's fault. I told them to have better security from monster attacks, but did he listen? NO. So of course when the monster attacked, Perseus got left behind. Fortunately (for him, not for me), an old couple found him in the ruins of the hotel and took him in. And of course, more than a decade later, they finally track down Percy and the couple; he lives four years with his parents, and then gets accused of being an imposter because the idiot Poseidon didn't realize that Rachel was a spy to Maplecoast.

And…I might admit that maybe, just maybe, I was a little too harsh on him.

I might've _accidentally_ tripped and set his clothes on fire once…or twice…But that's beside the point. What really pulled me over was the fact that he actually _tried_ to put aside our *cough* _differences_ *cough* for the sake of Annabeth. Not saying that he succeeded, but for Annabeth, I guess I would do a lot of things.

Anyways, today was the day that Annabeth would be married to Percy. I never thought that there would be a day that I would be happy for my daughter to marry a son of the famous idiot Barnacle Beard. But then again, I never thought I would even agree to the marriage in the first place. I was snapped back to reality as the bride walked down the aisle scattered with flower petals, earning _oohs_ and _ahs_ from the crowd. Annabeth looked absolutely stunning in her simple yet elegant gown that was accented by silver owl earrings dangling from her ears and her ring that flashed in the sunlight.

Aphrodite was beaming from ear to ear as she saw Annabeth walking down the aisle to Percy, who was staring at her with a lovestruck expression. The wedding had officially begun.

"So, family and friends we have gathered here today to…." I tuned out Aphrodite's words after that. I narrowed my eyes, scrutinizing Percy, who currently was staring into Annabeth's eyes, while she returned the favor. I almost doubted they would even hear when they should speak.

"…Anyone have any objections to this wedding?" All eyes turned towards me. What? No! I was not going to ruin Annabeth's happiness today. What were they thinking, those imbeciles? I waved my hand in a gesture that meant, _go on, go on,_ while glaring at the people who had turned to look at me, as if waiting for an objection.

"Perseus and Annabeth, together you have endured many trials…"

Some people glanced at me again while I muttered quietly, "Guilty."

"…but love has seen you through. You may now exchange your vows."

Percy went first. "I, Percy, take you, Annabeth, to be my wife, from this day forward. I love you, Annabeth, with all my heart, for the rest of my life, no matter what. I will love you even if it means going to Tartarus and back."

I think I saw tears in Annabeth's eyes when he was speaking. I hardly restrained myself from letting a few tears fall when I heard that, though I kept on an unemotional mask.

All eyes then turned to Annabeth. "I, Annabeth Chase, take you, Percy, to be my husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."

"Perseus, do you take Annabeth to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do."

"Annabeth, do you take Perseus to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do." Each of them spoke the words with determination, pride, and happiness.

"These rings forever symbolize your love for and commitment to each other," Aphrodite continued, while two beautiful rings were presented on a cushion.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. Perseus, you may now kiss the bride."

I had a feeling that he was waiting for those words all along as he leaned forward and captured Annabeth's lips, while the guests applauded them. As Percy led the radiant Annabeth down the aisle, I thought that maybe, just maybe, after all these years, I would finally accept them.

And that was exactly what I did.

* * *

 **I'm sorry I didn't update sooner, I had a lot of schoolwork. Thank you to all the people who left reviews!**

 **I3booksosh: Thank you so much, as this was the first review. I don't know how to describe how I felt when I realized that you reviewed my story(I didn't think anyone would).**

 **Limeime: Thanks(I think I'm using this word too much, but I can't think of anything else!).**

 **AwesomeFic: Thank you for sticking with me. I'll keep in mind that I shouldn't repeat events in another person's POV.**

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 **abcathena: I'll try making my chapters longer in the future...and thank you for giving me feedback on the story.**

 **Guests(chapter 14): Glad to know that you read my story and liked it.**


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